


i still will stay

by adverbialstarlight



Category: All For The Game - Nora Sakavic
Genre: Cats, Established Relationship, Fluff, Idiots in Love, Introspection, M/M, Near Future, Neil Josten's Fifth Year, POV Andrew Minyard, Post-Canon, ish
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-22
Updated: 2019-11-22
Packaged: 2021-02-26 02:21:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,099
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21525901
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/adverbialstarlight/pseuds/adverbialstarlight
Summary: Nearing the end of Neil's last year at Palmetto and limited time before he and Andrew will be sent to different cities for different teams, they adopt a cat or two.
Relationships: Neil Josten/Andrew Minyard
Comments: 3
Kudos: 79
Collections: AFTG Discord Telephone Round 1





	i still will stay

**Author's Note:**

> this is a small ficlet i wrote for a telephone game in the AFTG reverse bang discord! it's inspired by another piece from syd, whose fic i'll link if/when she posts it. check out the other works that came from this fun little game in the rest of the collection, and enjoy this dumb fic with a plot that has probably been done way better by someone else already!
> 
> unbetaed, please excuse any mistakes. title is from Surrender by Walk the Moon.

When Neil told Andrew to get into the car because he had an errand to run, Andrew had initially thought nothing of it. He’d simply nodded, placed his bookmark in the book he was reading, and followed Neil outside. Neil slipped into the driver’s seat and turned on the engine, giving Andrew a small, almost mischievous glance before he faced forward again and tore out of their apartment building’s parking lot. This made Andrew a bit more wary. Still, he put it aside and flicked on the radio. It was Neil, there wasn’t any reason for distrust— not anymore. 

And yet, Neil failed to keep surprising him. 

Fifteen minutes later, they were pulling into a small back parking lot, sitting in front of a sign that read “Pawsome Pet Rescue and Animal Shelter”. Andrew looked over to Neil, eyebrows raised in question. 

“Surprise,” Neil said, smiling. “You’re officially becoming a cat owner today, Drew.” 

“Am I now?” 

Neil shrugged. “Since we’re not going to see each other for a little while, playing on different teams and whatever, I just thought we could get a cat or something so you don’t forget about me for however long this is going to last. It’s stupid, especially since you _can’t_ forget anything and all but… I don’t know. We don’t have to if you don’t want, it was just an idea.” 

Andrew studied Neil for a long moment. Even now, he was a fucking pipedream. It was ridiculous and impossible, and Andrew didn’t even know if he was qualified enough to own a cat, but still he felt a familiar ache of warmth seep through the general apathy, a feeling that always seemed to creep in when Neil pulled shit like this. “Don’t be stupid,” he finally said. He clicked the button releasing his seatbelt and climbed out of the car, nodding towards the building when Neil did not move. 

Then, slowly, a small smile formed on his lips and he got out of the car as well. That stupid smile widened even more when Andrew held open the door. He wanted to wipe it right off of Neil’s face, and there were many ways he supposed he could make that happen, but instead Andrew turned to stare at the woman behind the reception desk. 

She looked up as they walked in, pushing the cat eye glasses up on the bridge of her nose. “Hello there, gentlemen. Can I help you with anything today?” 

“Can we look at the cats?” Neil said, not bothering with any preamble. “We’d like to adopt a cat today.” 

“Oh,” the woman said. She glanced between the two of them, lingering nervously on Andrew. He was unphased by it, having been used to the unsettled stares for years. “Yes, of course. Give me just a moment and one of the volunteers can take you into the back. Your timing is pretty good, there’s no one else visiting the cats right now.” 

Neither of them said anything in response, Neil looking around the lobby curiously and Andrew watching Neil. He seemed fidgety, almost excited. When Andrew caught his eye, he smiled again. Andrew rolled his eyes but pulled his hands out of his pockets, letting them fall only a mere centimeters from Neil’s. 

A moment later, the woman at the desk called for someone, and a girl emerged from the door to the right. She looked around nineteen and had a dark hijab covered in cat fur, most likely from the small, tan kitten cradled in her arms like a baby. 

“Mariyam,” the woman at the desk greeted her. “These two would like to visit the cats, would you escort them back there?” 

“Yeah sure,” the girl replied. “Those two new kittens are throwing a bit of a fit again, though. You two alright with that?” 

Neil shrugged, sending Andrew a secretive glance. “I’m sure we can manage with it. This one’s basically a cranky cat most of the time too.” Andrew shot him an unamused stare for that, and Neil waved a hand. “My point exactly.” 

Mariyam smiled at the two of them, a rare reaction to their relationship. Perhaps she recognized Andrew’s own brand of fondness in the way he shook his head dismissively at Neil’s terrible joke. “The cats are this way,” she told them. 

Andrew and Neil followed her back through the door she’d come through, into a large bright room full of various cats. Some were playing with each other or shyly sitting in the corner, observing the others. Most lounged on the various cat towers and blankets across the room. 

There was one pair of cats in particular that caught Andrew’s eye though, two small kittens atop one of the towers together and hissing at any other cat who came near. They didn’t seem hostile towards each other, on the contrary they seemed pretty comfortable, but met all the others with fierce glares. He let out a small huff of amusement, brushing his fingers against Neil’s wrist and nodding towards the pair. 

Neil looked away from the room of cats and followed Andrew’s gaze. When he saw the two cats, he muttered, “Reminds me of these idiot twins I know.” 

Mariyam was saying something about the other cats and adoption papers, but when she saw where Andrew and Neil were looking, her expression shifted to something like surprise. “Oh, those are the cranky cats Jenny was talking about. They were found together last month close to Palmetto State, we think they might’ve come from the same litter. When we tried separating them for a little while they got a bit aggressive and they haven’t taken to visitors very well so I would probably suggest staying away from them. You can definitely try, but don’t be disappointed if they try to scratch at you. Those poor girls have probably been through some serious shit.” 

Neil hummed. “I’d imagine,” he said. “Thanks, we’ll look around a bit.” 

“Yeah no problem, if you have any other questions I can answer, I’ll be around,” Mariyam said. She walked away then, leaving Andrew and Neil at the entryway. A few cats were watching them curiously now. Andrew leaned down to pet one but glanced at the two cats on the tower again. From the corner of his eye, he knew Neil was too. 

They shared a look and came to a silent agreement. Carefully, they made their way through the room and towards the tower. A few cats trailed them until realizing where they were headed, then scampered away in disinterest. 

“Hi there,” Neil said softly when they came up to the tower. He didn’t try to pet them or get any closer, simply standing there while the cats hissed. Andrew came up next to him, watching the way the cat with a small white spot looked around the room with sharp eyes. When she saw Andrew she hissed as well, extending a paw in a false swipe. Andrew didn’t react, remaining completely still and expressionless, which seemed to take the cat by surprise. She repeated the action once more, this time letting her claws within inches of Andrew, but once again he did nothing. 

“There is literally no point in doing that,” Andrew told her simply. His voice remained even, as if he were talking to one of the Foxes, and the cat tilted her head, curious this time. “What.” 

She remained staring at him, and Andrew almost wanted to laugh. He raised his eyebrows at her instead. 

From beside him, Neil reached out a hand slowly, putting it right in front of the cat tower but not touching. The cat he stood in front of looked to her sibling, whiskers twitching. After a few seconds, she turned back, considered Neil’s hand, then scampered down the cat tower. 

She surprised all of them by hopping down entirely, then circled Neil’s feet once, then scaled up the tower as fast as she’d come down. Neil grinned at her, then met Andrew’s eyes again. He knew what Neil was asking, and he had no thoughts to oppose the decision. It was strikingly clear, these were the cats they were going to adopt. Andrew inclined his head slightly, then turned to the cat Neil had been talking to. 

Neil grinned fully and genuinely now, biting his lip to suppress it before calling Mariyam over again. She seemed surprised when she joined them by the cat tower but then greeted the two cats with an unexpected pat on the head for both of them. It seemed these two cats didn’t hate _all_ the employees here, as the woman out front implied. 

“Have you decided you want to adopt one of the cats?” she asked. 

“Yes, actually,” Neil said, nodding to the two next to them. “We want to adopt these two.” 

Mariyam hid her surprise well. She nodded and smiled. “Fantastic, Jenny can sort out all the paperwork out the front. Congratulations, I’m glad these two have found someone to adopt them. I think they’ll do well with you guys.” 

“Thanks. Do they have names?” Neil asked. 

“We’ve been calling them Red and Orange around here, I don’t really know how that even happened, but I don’t think they’re very fond of those names. You can change them once everything is filled out,” Mariyam said. 

Neil snorted. “Who names their cats after colors?” he muttered as they followed Mariyam to the lobby. “Even Nicky probably has better names for them than that. 

“We’re not letting my cousin name our cats,” Andrew said flatly. 

Aaron had let Nicky suggest a name for his and Katelyn’s ferret last year, and so Nicky had come up with the name Ferred Weasley. Unfortunately for Aaron, his girlfriend was a bigger Harry Potter fan than he’d realized, and so it became the ferret’s official name, much to his horror. Andrew was not about to make the same mistake. 

Neil only shrugged, smirking mischievously. “You never know, maybe he’ll think of something good.” 

Andrew heaved a sigh. He was secretly looking forward to hearing whatever atrocious thing Nicky would come up with for their cats, but that didn’t mean he’d tell Neil— and definitely not Nicky— that. 

He zoned out of the conversation as Neil talked to the desk woman and read through the contracts. When Neil lightly tapped him on the arm, he was holding out two forms, a blank space next to his own signature on each for Andrew’s. Andrew took the pen and signed both papers, noticing Neil had already listed both their other needed information already. 

As Neil handed back the signed papers, Mariyam smiled again. “Congratulations,” she told them again. “One home visit is required before you’re able to keep Red and Orange at home for good, but you should be able to take them within the next two weeks. Good luck, and I hope you’re able to think of some good names for the girls soon.” 

Neil thanked her once more and then they left the shelter. The drive back to their apartment was quiet for the most part, then Andrew finally said, “Which one’s going with you?” 

They stopped at a red light and Neil turned to him. “I dunno yet, but I guess we’ll figure it out, yeah?” 

Andrew said nothing, but he silently agreed. They would figure it all out again, the cats, the distance, all of it. 

Andrew had been playing for the local South Carolina team this past year while Neil finished his last year at Palmetto, but they’d both be going to teams in different parts of the country after graduation. It’d be a change, a big one, but Andrew wasn’t concerned. 

He stole a glance at Neil as the other man turned back to the road. Everything would work out, and for once Andrew was sure of it. 

(Three months later, Andrew and Sir Fat Cat McCatterson— who had fallen victim to Nicky’s stupid naming— moved into a condo in Boston, three days after Neil and King Fluffkins— also subjected to Nicky’s suggested name— had settled into one of their own in Milwaukee. It was a strange feeling to be on his own again, without his brother or cousin or boyfriend and just one of his cats, but he still felt no concern, even now. It was a temporary thing, and even if he wouldn’t be able to see Neil or King for a few weeks, it was going to be alright. 

He sat down on the sofa with Sir, staring out the window and over the streets of Boston. _Soon_ , he thought.) 

**Author's Note:**

> and that's the end! thanks so much for reading and be sure to check out everyone else's lovely works. you might also be able to expect a few more of these in the future ;)
> 
> if you want, catch me on [twitter](https://twitter.com/adverbialnouns) or [tumblr](http://adverbialstarlight.tumblr.com)


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